1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for synthesizing lithium-titanium oxide using a solid state method, and more specifically to a method for synthesizing lithium-titanium oxide, which is used for a breeding material in a nuclear fusion reaction and represented by Li2TiO3, using a solid state method.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Among deuterium and tritium which are used as fuels of a nuclear fusion reactor, tritium is generated by a reaction of neutrons and lithium because it is not present in nature. A material generating tritium is referred to as a breeding material, and a breeding material including lithium in a solid state is referred to as a solid breeding material.
Representative examples of the solid breeding material include lithium oxide (Li2O), lithium-aluminum oxide (Li2AlO2), lithium-zirconium oxide (Li2ZrO3), lithium-titanium oxide (Li2TiO3), lithium-silicon oxide (Li4SiO4), etc.
Especially, among these solid ceramic breeding materials, lithium-titanium oxide (Li2TiO3) is now known to have advantages in that it has high stability at a high temperature and is capable of generating tritium at a low temperature.
However, lithium-titanium oxide which has been commercialized is expensive, and includes impurities such as cobalt which is a long-period element, and thus is disadvantageous in that it is difficult to be reused as a breeding material. Further, when lithium-titanium oxide is formed by a solid state synthesis method, it is difficult to control the reduction of a particle size for ensuring the ease of tritium emission.